Menemen

This is a Turkish egg dish that is sort of a cross between scrambled eggs and shakshuka. I used to make a version of this during the pandemic when I needed a quick, comforting and filling dinner. If there’s one benefit of living on your own, it’s that you can eat breakfast for dinner!

This year, my husband and I stopped in Istanbul for a few nights on our way back to Cape Town from Ireland ( No it doesn’t really make sense geographically but the airlines make it work so you feel like you’re being super clever sneaking an extra holiday in!!). We did an amazing food tour of Istanbul  where we had menemen at one of the breakfast spots. It was so good, way better than the imitation I had been making in Kent!

Having read many different recipes and a bit of trial and error I have landed on a simple version that takes minutes to make and a handful of ingredients.

In honour of my solo dinner days, this serves one perfectly- for breakfast , lunch or dinner.

Ingredients

·        100g baby tomatoes

·        1/3 of a red pepper – Green peppers are traditional but I’m sorry they are too bitter for me!

·        Drizzle of olive oil

·        Pinch of sugar

·        Salt, pepper and optional scattering of dried dill (or any fresh herbs that you like!)

·        2 eggs

·        Optional : add garlic and chilli at the start of the cooking.

Method

1.      Half the tomatoes and dice the pepper. Drizzle the oil of a pan and heat up on a medium heat.

2.      Add the tomatoes and pepper. Pop a lid on the pan and fry for ~10 minutes until soft, checking every few minutes and giving a stir to break up the tomatoes.

3.      Add the pinch of sugar, pepper, salt and herbs.

4.      Crack the eggs into the mixture. Using the wooden spoon gently scramble the eggs, breaking the yolks and combining with the veggies.

5.      Turn the heat down, leave the lid off,  and let the eggs cook for a few minutes until just cooked through.

6.      Serve with some toast and a good book.